Vattenfall’s Spring 2025 newsletter for South West Scotland is now available.

If you missed the chance to attend The Glenkens Story’s 10th Anniversary Celebrations on March 23rd (or would like to see them again) they now appear on the CatStrand’s You Tube platform.

Carsphairn SWI members were invited to share anything at all related to plants and growing at this fun, informative meeting in March 2025.

Come along to the Thistle Inn on Thursday 27th March 2025, anytime between 2.30-8.30pm to see the feedback from all your Local Place Plan form filling and our conversations! 

The Galloway & Southern Ayrshire Biosphere Partnership has announced that it will be running its popular Biosphere Guide Training Course again in 2025, following previous years’ success.

President, Melissa Ade welcomed a great turn out of members and friends to our February meeting. She then introduced Anna Campbell, a valued friend of Carsphairn Rural and someone with a wealth of knowledge about the history of the local area.

The project is currently seeking videographers to create exciting social media content for its Glenkens Hub website and social media channels. The stories, photos and reels will spotlight younger people living and working in the Glenkens.

Andy Kaye is combining a love for the outdoors and technology to bring local Glenkens trails to a wider audience.

A local businessman plans to put the abandoned Corsock garage back on the map.

The Glenkens Community and Arts Trust (GCAT) is delighted to confirm that Creative Scotland has awarded them full funding for their CatStrand Arts programme in the national announcements today, Thursday 30th January 2025.

New Galloway, Dumfries and Galloway — The CatStrand Arts Centre, a hub for creativity and community in New Galloway, has reached a major sustainability milestone, transitioning its heating system entirely to renewable energy sources.

Community buildings across the Glenkens have made significant strides in improving energy efficiency and reducing their carbon footprint over the last few years.

A high-quality educational provision is essential for sustaining thriving rural communities - it attracts and retains working families and so underpins the local economy.

President, Melissa Ade welcomed a really good turnout of members and friends to the first meeting of 2025 on Thursday 23rd January.

The Galloway Glens Scheme came to an end in September 2023 after a fantastic 5 years supporting the communities of the Ken/Dee valley. The legacy of the Galloway Glens can be seen in many concrete ways, including a suite of new footpaths across the area and renewed community buildings and assets.

Where do our Apples come from? Why does Dumfries & Galloway Have such a high proportion of ‘pure’ crab apples? What can we do to protect this? These questions will be explored in a fun and informative online event at 7.30pm on 28th January.

In New Galloway and Kells Parish, we have started work on our Local Place Plan, the opportunity for everyone in the parish to have their say on what they would like to see happen here.

Many celebrations across Dumfries and Galloway have been taking place this month to celebrate the Scottish bard, Robert Burns, and Carsphairn was no exception, holding their 54th annual fundraising Burns Supper in Lagwyne Hall on Friday 17th January.

We will be marking the 10 year anniversary of The Glenkens Story with an afternoon of celebration at the CatStrand on Sunday 23rd March. 

The Community Action Plan Steering Group has published its Annual Report into delivery of the Glenkens and district Community Action Plan (CAP) over 2024.